Greetings my friends.
My decision to blog every day during Advent is, of course, about Advent and not about
the discipline of blogging. I am one of those persons for whom waiting is understood
as a lovely gift of nature that other people were given. I am just not good
at it. As Joe and I journey through our years together there are so many times
when he will say, "Let's wait and see what happens." My response is
predictable. "Let's not."
So, year after year, when it is time to "wait with Mary" or "wait
for the coming of the Lord Jesus" I am the one struggling to be still. Matthew
24:42 says "Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord
is coming." And my honest response to those words would be "Let's
go look for him."
As I reflected on my commitment year after year to experience Advent I realized several things.
1. Lighting the Advent Candles is a nice tradition but I light candles throughout
the entire year and while it can serve as a reminder for some, it does not work
well for me.
2. Opening the windows on the count-down calendars that have been part of Advent
for the children in our family for many years is perhaps a way to teach them
about waiting, but it doesn't do much for me.
3. Because Joe is a lover of the liturgical year, I can count on meaningful celebrations
for each Sunday of the Season. But I have been aware for several years that
my Advent "experience" is marked by Sundays and not by the other six
days of the week.
4. And then I was gifted with the self-awareness to know that I would have to make
a commitment to someone else or this would be just another year when Advent would
sail by and Christmas Eve would be marked with my regret.
I decided to make that commitment to you. I don't know that I will have anything
new or important to say but I am going to show up every day and share my heart
with you anyway. For those of you who show up to hear it I thank you in advance.
In 2008 during one of our visits with Fr. Richard Rohr, he gifted us with his book
Preparing for Christmas. I like almost everything he teaches but I especially liked the fact that in this
book he closed each day's reflection with a question. Responding closes the
circle for me. It completes thoughts. To be honest, I just like to be included
in the discussion. So in choosing a pattern for my blogging through this Advent
I decided to answer those questions each day and share those thoughts with you. If
you don't have his book and you want it go to www.cacradicalgrace.org and click
on "The Mustard Seed". I'm sure you will like the book but you don't
need to have it to follow the blog.
The Question: "What expectations and demands of life can you let go of so that you can be
more prepared for the coming of Jesus?"
To be honest with you my answers really surprised me so maybe the Holy Spirit will
accompany us on this journey.
The first is my expectation that the culture will be of some support to me. The
culture just has it all completely wrong and I will have to go against the grain
to have a meaningful Advent.
The second is the idea that because it is the holidays, family and friends will somehow
behave differently (better and more loving) toward one another. I seem to wake
up infused with the idea that those who don't like one another will, and that
those who are disappointed with another will forget their disappointment, and
that those who need to seek forgiveness will be forgiven without the seeking.
The third expectation that hangs me up every year is my mix up between magical and
mystical. If you listen to the Carols being sung and the words being spoken
there is this ongoing talk about things being magical. This season is about
what is mystical and not about what is magical. A mystic is one who has an experience
of God. Magic would be the illusion of an experience of God. And I suspect
that is what we have all learned to settle for.
And finally, I expect "change" rather than "Presence". I expect
Jesus to come and change things .... you know .... all the things that are bothering
me. But the promise is Presence and the promise is NOT change. So I cannot
greet the Lord Jesus on Christmas by looking for where things are differenct,
I will have to be able to recognize Him in all the ways that things are the same. And
from there perhaps we can effect some "change" together.
Maybe waiting hasn't been easy for me because I've never been sure what I am waiting
for?